The Detroit Red Wings are the anti-Detroit Lions.
Remember when that was a good thing?
This season, while the NFL Lions keep finding ways to win, it’s the Wings who continually seek out new methods to lose.
They couldn’t get the job done Sunday, rallying for a 4-3 overtime victory on the road over the New York Islanders despite twice blowing third-period leads, a recurring theme for this hockey team.
“Obviously, you get leads and give them up, you don’t want to do that but it’s part of the game,… Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said. “They’re a good team, too, they’re going to push as well.
“I thought our guys stayed with it, even after the times we gave up those goals. We had real good bounce-back shifts, so that was important.
“I thought we did things I was pleased with from a process standpoint.…
Defenseman Danny DeKeyser, whose OT tally won the game for Detroit, admitted there was an eerie sense of déjà vu after the team had squandered a 3-1 third-period lead Saturday and lost 5-3 at Pittsburgh.
“Especially coming off last night, when they tied it up in the third it was a tough feeling for us,… DeKeyser said.
While he didn’t like that they blew their advantages, DeKeyser was pleased that the Wings stuck with their gameplan and didn’t push the panic button like they’d done in Saturday’s debacle of a third period.
“We just kept playing,… DeKeyser said. “It was good. We had some chances. Tats (forward Tomas Tatar) hit the post. We had a few other scrambles in front of their net that could have went in.
“Every time they scored, we had some good shifts after that, countering back and trying to make a push.…
Detroit defenseman Mike Green, who scored twice, also admired the way they stuck with it through the adverse conditions of the final frame of regulation time.
“We maintained composure but I think it stemmed from the little things,… Green said. “We kept doing the little things correctly all game.
“Our compete level was up. Anytime you have those two things it gives us a chance.…
The Wings found a way to claw back to victory but if they persist on digging these holes, eventually, they will get buried.
Two For Three It looked like Green had his second hat-trick of the season when he scored in the third period to apparently give Detroit a 3-2 edge, but the call was overturned on a coach’s challenge when a review revealed that Detroit forward Luke Glendening had interfered with Isles goalie Jaroslav Halak.
“The replay was 50-50,… Green said. “It could’ve gone either way. It’s up to the ref. He made the call.
“We just had to stay composed and keep going.…
Happy Homecoming It was an emotional night for Wings center Frans Nielsen, who’d spent his first 10 NHL seasons with the Islanders and returned as a visitor for the first time.
“It was awesome,… Nielsen said. “It was some nerves. I’ve been looking at the schedule for a long time, just waiting for this game. It feels like now when it’s done I can kind of move on.
“So it was a big win for us. I was really happy we came out and responded after last night, too.…
The Isles played a video tribute to Nielsen on the center-ice scoreboard during a stoppage in play.
“Jon Ledecky, the owner, texted me before the game and said they were going to do it,… Nielsen said. “I’ve been here so long, so many people, this whole organization, it means a lot to me. So I’m happy they did that.
“It was fun.…
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